George roger



' (No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

'G.ROGER.

MAGHINE FOR CUTTING PILE 01E WEFT PILE FABRICS. No. 592,714. PatentedOct. 26,1897.

(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

G. ROGER.

MAGHINEAFOR CUTTING PILE 0E WEPT PILE FABRICS. No. 592,714. PatentedOct. 26, 1897.

UNITED STATES PATENT O CE.

GEORGE ROGER, OF WARRINGTON, ENGLAND.

MACHINE FOR CUTTING PILE OF WEFT PILE FABRICS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 592,714, dated October26,1897.

Application filed January 23, 1897. $erial No. 620,497. (No model.)Patented in England October 16, 1895, No. 19,381 in France February11,1896, No. 253,846, in Belgium February 11,1896, No.119,'786,' inGermany February 14,1896,No.

88,931, and in Austria December 16, 1896, No. LG/5,021.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, GEORGE ROGER, a subject of the Queen of GreatBritain, residing at VVarrington, in the county of Lancaster, England,have invented new and useful Improvements in Cutting the Pile of WeftPile Fabrics, (for which I have obtained patents in the followingcountries Great Britain, numbered 19,381 and dated October 16, 1895;France, numbered 253,846 and dated February 11, 1896; Belgium, numbered119,786 and dated February 11, 1896; Germany, numbered 88,931 and datedFebruary 1a, 1896, and in Austria, numbered 46/5,021 and dated December16, 1896,) of which the following is a specification.

The improvements relate to the cutting of the weft pile fabrics, and aremore particularly applicable to cutting on what is known as the longrun, although they may be adapted to the short frame, if requisite, andhave for their object greater facility in connection with'such'cutting.To accomplish this and to effect my improvements, I mount in anyconvenient manner at each end of a stretched piece of cloth in acutting-frame, preferably a drum or pulley, either vertically,horizontally, or at an angle, around which pulleys I cause to pass anendless 'cord, wire, or band, or it may be a light chain-gearing,whichcord, wire, or band stretches above the surface of the fabric insufficiently-close proximity thereto. .Tothis cord, wire, or band Iattach at two points a light frame, by'means of which the cutting-knifeis actuated in its travel in such manner that as the'band is moved theknife is pulled or pushed along in the race of the fabric. Attached to,connected with, or forming part of each of the pulleys afore said may bearranged a second pulley, preferably'concentric with the first and ofsmaller diameter, around which smaller pulleys a second cord, wire, orband is caused to pass in such mannerthat as the operator moves thelast-named band the pulleys are revolved and the band passing over thelarger pulleys is moved to a greater distancethan the actuating-band,whereby a distance of race is cut at one operation which may greatlyexceed the travel of the operator, or the operator may remainstationary, moving the cord only within arms length, and yet cause theknife to travel a considerable distance, or, in lieu of this second setof pulleys and bands, a handle may be attached to one of the first-namedpulleys, and thereby the knife maybe carried forward by the simpleturning of such handle. In like manner a handle may be attached to oneof the secondary pulleys above named and the actuation effected therebyin an analogous manner. At the same time the operator can readily becomesensibly aware of any varyingactuation given to the knife arising frompenetration of the fabric or other cause by means of a screw or othertension apparatus for stretching apart the pulleys to the proper degreerequisite for the purpose.

That the improvements may be better understood I will, with the aid ofthe accompanying drawings, proceed more fully to describe means employedby me.

In the drawings, Figure 1 shows an elevation partly in section; and Fig.2 a plan view of apparatus arranged in accordance with one form of myinvention at the operating end of the stretched piece of clotl1,whileFig. 3 shows an elevation partly in section, and Fig. 4 a plan view ofapparatus arranged in accordance with a like formof my invention atthe'opposite end of the strained piece of cloth.

The same letters indicate corresponding parts wherever they occur.

a is a portion of the framing carrying the tightening-rollers b for thepurpose of stretching thecloth to be cut, as will readilybe'understood,and all details of which a'r omitted for the sake ofclearness.

c are the pieces of cloth, although only one maybe operated upon atonce; but'it is practicable to operate two, as shown, which may bearranged either to overlap eachother in their width or may be arrangedclear of each other side by side.

d is a portion of the framing carrying the special apparatus to bedescribed, theother end being supported by the ordinaryframing a,although, if preferred, the framing may be designed to carry theapparatus independently.

c shows a weft-pile-cutting knife which is preferably carried forward bymeans of the carrier f, which is supported solely by the stretchedfabric and actuated by the band or cord g, which passes around thepulley h, to which is attached the smaller pulley h, and which is drivenby the band or cord j, passing around the third pulley 7a, which isoperated by the handle Z, as will be readily understood. The cord orband 9 traverses the length of the strained portion of cloth and aroundthe pulley m,which is mounted on the stud 01, attached to the slidingplate orframe o. In similar manner the pulley h is mounted on the slidep,which carries with it the pulley k,with its handle Z, by means of theprojection q, the end of which rests and slides on the bar 1', formingpart of or attached to the frame a. The slide 1) is caused tosynchronize with the slide 0 by means of the cord or band .9, passingfrom its attachment of the one slide to the attachment of the otherslide around the pulleys t, '21, and o. In additioncounterbalancing-cords w and w are shown in Figs. 2 and t passing overpulleys, and to the ends of which weights are attached, but which areomitted in the other views for the sake of clearness. Any suitable meansmay be employed for adjusting the length of this cord for the purpose ofkeeping the slides in their proper relative positions, and in Fig. 2 aratchet-wheel 0c and pawl 03 is shown on the shaft or drum 0?, uponwhich a cord whose other end is fixed, as at y, is wound at intervals bysuch ratchet-wheel and pawl.

To keep the bandj of the requisite degree of tension, the screwextension .2 is provided, whereby the pulleys 7L and 7c are forced apartor drawn together, as desired.

In operation the knife is set into the race in the ordinary manner, whenthe handle is turned and the knife-carrier travels with the knife to theopposite end, and is brought back by reversing the motion of the handle.The knife may be attached loosely to the carrier by means of a cord andhook or other convenient arrangement to insure the same being broughtback to the operator. lVhen two pieces of cloth are strained, as shown,a knife-carrier is provided to both halves of the cord in such mannerthat one goes forward as the other returns. By means of the adjustmentof tension of the actuating-cordj great delicacy of operation may beobtained, so as to enable the operator to readily feel any variation inthe resistance to the force required to actuate the knife. Only justsufficient tension may be given to the actuatingcord to enable it topropel the knife when cutting a single race, so that in the event of theknife meeting with any obstruction or more than normal resistance to itstravel the actuating-cord will slip on the pulley and the knife willcease to travel, so that if the knife turns into the slip or double raceor makes a hole in the cloth it stops in its progress and thus avoidsfurther damage to the cloth.

In lieu of the handle-pulley a pulley without a handle, as alreadydescribed, may be employed, and the operator would in that case actuatethe apparatus by pulling the cord j to and fro. Also, when only oneknife is employed, the pulleys carrying the band g may be mounted inother positions than the horizontal, as shown, and the design of theparts and precise mode of actuating and connecting the same may be made,togetherwith other variations in detail, without departing from thepeculiar character of the invention.

Inasmuch as the value and quality of the cloth operated upon by machinesof this character depends wholly upon the degree of perfection andaccuracy of the cutting of the pile, Ihave discovered from actualexperience that by causing the knife or its carrier to ride directlyupon or be supported solely by the stretched fabric (whether such clothis supported or not by a table) the knife will be enabled to accuratelyfollow the curve or undulation of such fabric and thereby cut the pilewith great nicety and precision, and at the same time, owing to thedelicacy of this operation, the operator instantly feels any 0bstructionor undue resistance to the free travel of the knife, and thereby,knowing that something is going wrong, ceases to propel the knife atonce, thus preventing the knife from puncturing or otherwise injuringthe cloth.

An apparatus made in accordance with my invention is very simple inconstruction and can be cheaply manufactured. Its parts are also withinreach and can be easily got at for repair and adjustment.

Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my saidinvention and in what manner the same is to be performed, I would haveit understood that I do not claim the employment of a running band andtraveling knife per se; but

.Vhat I claim is- 1. In apparatus for cutting weft pile fabrics, thecombination of a traveling knife or knives supported solely by thecloth, a flexible cord or band carrying said knife or knives, andadapted to be moved to and fro to reciprocate the said knife or knives,substantially as and for the purposes hereinbefore set forth.

2. In apparatus for cutting weft pile fabrics, the combination of atraveling knife or knives, supported solely by the cloth, a flexiblecord or band carrying said knives, and mechanism arranged at theopposite ends of said apparatus for supporting said cord or band,substantially as and for the purposes hereinbefore set forth.

3. In apparatus for cutting weft pile fabrics, the combination of atraveling knife 01' knives, a carrier or carriers therefor sup,- portedsolely by the said cloth, a flexible cord or band, attached to saidcarrier or carriers,

pulleys or drums located at opposite ends of the frame and supportingthe said cord or band, and means for actuating the said cord or band,substantially as and for the purposes hereinbefore set forth.

4:. In apparatus for cutting Weft pile fabrics, the combination of atraveling knife or knives, supported solely by the cloth, a flexiblecord or band, pulleys or drums arranged at opposite ends of theapparatus for supporting said cord or band, driving-pulleys h and k, acord or band j passing around said last-named pulleys and means foractuating said cord or bandj, substantially as and for the purposeshereinbefore set forth.

5. In apparatus for cutting Weft pile fab rics, the combination of atraveling knife or knives, supported solely by the cloth, a cord or bandg carrying said knife or knives, pulleys or drums h and m arranged atopposite ends of the frame, a secondary driving-cord j, pulleys h and isaround which cord j passes,

a tension device ,2 adapted to regulate said cord j therefor,carrier-pulleys t, u and 0 on the frame of the apparatus, as set forth,slides o, 19, carrying pulleys h and m and connecting cord or band 8 formoving the slides synchronically across the Width of thecloth, sub?stantially as and for the purposes hereinbefore set forth.

GEORGE ROGER.

Witnesses WILLIAM GADD,

GEORGE FREDERICK GADD.

